Pallone & Army Corps of Engineers Announce Second Phase of the Hurricane and Storm Damage Reduction Project in Port Monmouth

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 22, 2016


Long Branch, NJ --- Today, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) announced that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has awarded a $13,696,687.00 contract for the Hurricane and Storm Damage Reduction Project in Port Monmouth. The contract will help fulfill the project’s second phase, which includes constructing a system of levees, a floodwall, a tide gate, road closure structures, road raising and pump stations. The funding is part of the $110 million allocated for Port Monmouth in the Sandy relief package that Pallone worked to secure in 2013. The contract was awarded to Kyle Conti Construction of Hillsborough, New Jersey.

“Many in Port Monmouth faced serious flooding during Sandy, unlike anything this community has ever seen,” said Pallone “All along the Bayshore, flooding has become an increasingly common phenomenon as severe storms have become more frequent and residential and commercial development has increased. The work being done here will strengthen our local infrastructure, reduce future damage, and keep our communities safe. I have been working to bring this project to fruition for years, so I’m pleased that the second stage is underway.”

The first phase of the project was successfully completed in June of 2015 and included dune restoration, beach replenishment, groin work, extension of the fishing pier, and construction of protective dunes. The entire $110 million effort will offer significant protection to the area, which has suffered frequent flooding, erosion and damage from rain and coastal storms in recent years. The Army Corps of Engineers hopes to complete the entire project by 2019.

Pallone Announces Completion of Phase One of Port Monmouth Flood Control Project

LONG BRANCH, NJ – Today, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) announced the completion of the first phase of the Port Monmouth Hurricane and Storm Damage Reduction Project. This $18 million project will reduce the risks that coastal storms pose to residents and businesses in the Port Monmouth area. The project is federally funded through the Sandy relief package that Pallone fought for and helped to pass in Congress. For the announcement in Bayshore Waterfront Park, Congressman Pallone was joined by Colonel David Caldwell, Commander of the New York District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

“The Port Monmouth flood control project will protect homes and businesses in our area from future flooding,” said Congressman Pallone. “I have worked for years to bring this project to fruition, so I’m especially pleased to announce the completion of the critical first phase. Port Monmouth, like so many other coastal New Jersey communities, faced serious flooding during Hurricane Sandy. All along the Bayshore, flooding has become an increasingly common phenomenon as severe storms have become more frequent and residential and commercial development has increased. The project strengthens our local infrastructure, reduces the risk of future flood damage and will keep our community safe.”

The first phase of the project included dune restoration, beach replenishment, groin work, extension of the fishing pier, and construction of protective dunes. Pallone highlighted the fact that the project will address major flood prevention to protect the low-lying residential and commercial areas in the Port Monmouth section of Middletown Township.

The project’s second phase will include constructing a system of levees, a floodwall, a tide gate, road closure structures, road regarding and pump stations. The entire $105 million project will be funded by the Sandy relief package and will offer significant protection to the area, which has suffered frequent flooding, erosion and damage from rain and coastal storms in recent years. The Army Corps of Engineers expects to begin awarding contracts for the second phase in May 2016 so that construction for the full project could be completed by 2019.

Pallone Announces $17.7 Million Contract Awarded for Port Monmouth Flood Control Project

PORT MONMOUTH, NJ — Today, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) announced that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has awarded a $17.7 million contract for the first phase of the Port Monmouth Coastal Storm Risk Management Project to Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company of Oak Brook, Illinois. The project will reduce the risks that coastal storms pose to residents and businesses in the Port Monmouth area. The project will be federally funded through the Sandy relief package that Pallone fought for and helped to pass in Congress in January 2013.

This first phase of the project includes dune restoration, beach replenishment, groin work, extension of the fishing pier, and construction of 2,640 feet of protective dunes, which will involve roughly 400,000 cubic yards of sand. Work is expected to begin this summer.

"I am very glad to hear that work is set to begin on this crucial project, which will protect so many homes and businesses in our area from future flooding,” said Pallone. “Many in Port Monmouth faced serious flooding during Sandy. All along the Bayshore, flooding has become an increasingly common phenomenon as severe storms have become more frequent and residential and commercial development has increased. The work being done will strengthen our local infrastructure and reduce future damages. I am pleased that this project is finally underway.”

Pallone announced that this flood control project will address major flood prevention to protect the low-lying residential and commercial areas in the Port Monmouth section of Middletown Township. The project’s second phase will include constructing a system of levees, a floodwall, and nearby pump stations. The entire $110 million project will be funded by the Sandy relief package and will offer significant protection to the area, which has suffered frequent flooding, erosion and damage from rain and coastal storms in recent years.

Pallone Announces Agreement Signed to Begin Port Monmouth Flood Control Project

WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) announced that this morning, Jo-Ellen Darcy, Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works), signed the Port Monmouth Project Partnership Agreement, the contract between the Army Corps of Engineers and the state of New Jersey formally outlining the terms and conditions of Port Monmouth flood control project. Construction on the project will move forward in the coming months. The project will be constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers with federal dollars from the Sandy relief package passed by Congress in January 2013.

"I am glad to hear that the Army Corps of Engineers and the state of New Jersey have reached an agreement and that construction on this crucial project, which will protect homes and businesses from future flooding, can begin,” said Pallone. “Many in Port Monmouth faced serious flooding during Sandy. All along the Bayshore, flooding has become an increasingly common phenomenon as severe storms have become more frequent and residential and commercial development has increased. I am pleased that this project will finally be underway.”

Pallone announced that the Army Corps of Engineers will address major flood prevention to protect the low-lying residential and commercial areas in the Port Monmouth section of Middletown Township. The plans will include the construction of nearly 7,070 feet of levees, 3,585 feet of floodwalls and 2,640 feet of dune and beach renourishment. The entire $91 million project will be funded by the Sandy relief package and will offer significant protection to the area, which has suffered frequent flooding, erosion and damage from rain and coastal storms.

The Army Corps of Engineers will likely begin advertising the first portion of the project in March 2014, with the contract scheduled to be awarded in May 2014. This phase of the project includes dune restoration, beach replenishment, the construction of a terminal groin and extension of the fishing pier, involving roughly 400,000 cubic yards of sand. The larger flood control aspect of the project, which includes levees, floodwalls, a pumping station and a tide gate, is slated to begin construction in 2015.

Joe Marques For NJ State Senate

Hazlet Democrat Joe Marques is running for the NJ State Senate in the 13th Legislative District. He recently posted a very good campaign video on YouTube explaining why he is running for the state senate.

 If you live in the northern Monmouth County Bayshore area or one of the other shore towns in the district, you should check it out the video. It's compelling and smartly done. It's one of the best campaign videos I've seen in a long time.

Check it out:

There's No doubt About It, You Can Expect Your Property Taxes To Go Up - WAY UP!

If you live in the northern Monmouth County Bayshore region or other coastal area in or around our state, you better start preparing yourself for the next big hit from Hurricane Sandy.

It doesn't matter whether or not you or your home were directly impacted by the storm or not. What matters is that if you happen to live in a town that was impacted by Sandy, you can expect your local property taxes to go up, WAY UP, this year as municipalities start putting together their budgets.

Due to the damage inflict on local residences and business as a result of Hurricane Sandy, many have lost a significant portion of their value while others will never be rebuilt. As a result, revenue generated by local property taxes will be significantly down for the foreseeable future, which means you will pay more to your town hall.

In Middletown, hundreds of properties in North Middletown, Port Monmouth, Belford and Leonardo were damaged and rendered uninhabitable (and may never be habitable again). Middletown still needs to generate roughly $45 million worth of revenues through local property tax assessments even though home values are no longer as high as they once were. Therefore, you can expect a huge increase in the tax rate to offset the loss of revenues created by the aftermath of Sandy.

So don't expect to hear much about trying to maintain that 2% cap on property  taxes this year because it aint gonna happen.

 The New York Times has an article on this today: Towns’ Next Hit From Hurricane Is to Tax Revenue  

Bayshore Comic Relief, Sunday December 9th

Come out and see a GREAT show and help the cause! All proceeds will be used to directly help the victims of Hurricane Sandy.

Sunday, December 9th

VFW Post 2179

Route 36, Port Monmouth

Doors open at 4pm, Show at 5pm

 Tickets are on sale NOW... Purchase them online at the link below.

Receive 1 FREE Jersey Relief Bracelet with each (online) ticket ordered! Come out and see a great show and help the cause.  Tickets are just $25.00 and ALL PROCEEDS TO BENEFIT THE VICTIMS OF HURRICANE SANDY...

Tickets are available online at http://bayshorecomedyrelief.eventbee.com/

Donate To The Campaigns Of Kevin Lavan and Patrick Short Before June 20th Fund Drive Ends and Volunteer Your Help

Former Middletown Committeeman Patrick Short is running for NJ State Assembly along with the former Mayor of Hazlet Kevin Lavin. The two are up against an entrenched Republican opposition and need everyone's help.

They are each committed to representing the people in the 13th District, especially the working middle class and seniors who live on a fixed income. They guarantee your voices will be heard in the Assembly if elected.

That is why it is so important that they raise enough funds to wage an effective campaign this November. They are currently in the middle of a very important fund raising drive that ends on June 20th. The results of this fund drive will be an early indication to those on the state level that Short and Lavan will be credible candidates and qualify them for matching funds.

Donations of any amount that you can spare are appreciated,donations of $5, $10, $20, $50 or more will go a long way and be put to good use in order to get the message out about who Patrick and Kevin are and how they can best represent the people of the 13th Legislative district, ensuring that the voices of the Northern Monmouth Bayshore and the rest of the 13th district is heard down in Trenton.

If you can not afford to donate money but would like to volunteer your time to the campaign,send a letter to the address below and let them know you are available to give in other ways, like phone banking, addressing envelopes or canvassing.

Any little bit helps.

Send donations or offers of support to:

Committee to Elect Cullen, Lavan & Short 2011
56 Fieldcrest Way
Hazlet, New Jersey 07730

Write-In Support Needed for Christopher Cullen, Democratic Candidate For NJ State Senate District 13, During Tuesday's Primary Election

If you have received your Primary ballots for the 13th District (Bayshore area) you'll notice something missing - The Democratic candidate for State Senate Candidate, CHRISTOPHER CULLEN is missing. Democrats needs to write in Chris's name when you go to vote. This will ensure that he appears on the ballot in November.

If you are unsure how to do this ask your local poll worker, that is what they are there for and they would be more than happy to explain how to do it.

Due to the lateness and confusion surrounding the filing deadline for candidates this year as a result of redistricting, Christopher Cullen had an issue with his Candidate petition before the filing deadline and did not receive enough valid signatures.

Therefore Cullen needs our help! Please do not forget to write-in CHRISTOPHER CULLEN on Tuesday, June 7th at the polls or on your absentee ballot.

Renaming Of New Highlands Bridge "Captain Joseph Azzolina Memorial Bridge" Passes Senate Committee

In tribute to one of the leading voices of the Bayshore, Joseph Azzolina, the NJ Senate Transportation Committee approved yesterday the renaming of the new Highlands bridge the "Captain Joseph Azzolina Memorial Bridge".

Azzolina who passed away on April 15th of this year was a life long resident of the Northern Monmouth Bayshore area and a leader of the community who served in both the NJ State Senate and Assembly from 1965 until 2006.

Mr. Azzolina was a true patriot, he served in the United States Naval Reserve from 1944-1986, Captain (Retired).[1] As a reservist, he returned to active duty in 1983 for a tour of seven months – four of them off the coast of Lebanon – aboard the battleship USS New Jersey. He received three Meritorious Service Medals and two Navy Secretary Commendation Medals in addition to other combat awards and honors. As an Asemblyman, Azzolina led the effort to acquire the retired ship and have it docked in New Jersey waters where it has been transformed to a floating museum.

In an email sent to family and friends, John Azzolina issued the following statement:

" Our family is proud to announce that a Bill renaming Highlands Bridge passes senate committee Today will be named after our father Joe Azzolina. The Senate will vote in the fall to finalize. We are so proud of his accomplishments in life and will never be forgotten!!!!!!!!!!!
The Azzolina Family"

To read more about the renaming of the bridge in honor of Joseph Azzolina you can check out the article on the Bayshore Courier News website.

Local Food Pantries In Need Of Donations

With Thanksgiving just 2 days away and Christmas right around the corner, local food pantries that serve the Bayshore region are in need and are seeking donations for the holiday season.

Nonperishable items, such as pasta, canned vegetables, rice, cereal and canned soups are in great demand. The economic recession has created a greater need for the services of local resources like the Keyport Ministerium.

Many food pantries are associated with the FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties, the largest pantry along the northern Jersey Shore. Visit the FoodBank website at www.foodbankmoc.org for information on local pantries and how to contact them.

Middletown's Patrick Short Finds Solutions to Problems Where Other Have Failed (And He has Never Raised Your Taxes !)

Middletown's Democratic Township Committeeman Patrick Short, in this video talks about issues that are effecting residents.

He states that the overall number#1 issue in town is taxes and that the Middletown GOP has consistently raised property taxes over the past 3 years by 16% while he has never supported or voted for any tax increases since being elected in 2006.

Flooding in the Port Monmouth/Bayshore area is also a major concern. Along with fellow Committeeman Sean Byrnes and residents from the area, Patrick Short has lead the way in finding a solution to this problem.

Patrick Short proposed a two part solution that would include a small pumping station be installed in the area, that would control flood waters by sending it back out into the creek nearby and to make improvements drainage pipes while also increasing the size of the berms an additional 16-18 inches, that run along the roadways.

Traffic in Lincroft has also been a major concerns to residents and while others talked about a solution or wished that the County would make road improvements, Patrick Short did something about.

Short fought for and gained approval to make the access road behind the Acme shopping center a two way street rather than a one way street. The street would then be routed behind the Luigi/Subways shopping center and opened to Middletown-Lincroft Rd.

By doing this, traffic congestion on Rt.520 and surrounding area will be alleviated and greater access to the shopping centers will be gained. It is a Win-Win for both the merchants and residents in the area.

Watch the video and hear for yourself What Patrick Short has to say on the subjects:

Taxes and Middletown, Perfect Together

As anyone who follow this blog knows, I am no fan of the Middeltown GOP and their bond, spend ,tax and then blame others, policies. 

Since late February, I have been pointing out that the Middletown Republicans, who have controlled  the township committee for the past 20 some odd years, have been planning a 9.2% municipal tax increase this year in order to plug a $2.4 million hole in the township budget that has not been adopted yet. This budget shortfall is approximately the same as last years, when the township used  a couple of one shot revenue gimmicks in addition to a 7.2% tax increase balance the budget.

In order to keep Middletown running for the past 5+ months, temporary budget resolutions have needed to be passed by the township committee. At last count, nearly 50% of  the expected operating expenses for the township for fiscal year 2009 have already been spent or have been allocated  to be spent. 

Now, how will it be possible to cut $2.4 million from the last remaining 50% of budget to avoid a 9.2% rate increase?  You can't, unless your willing make very hard choices. Choices that the Republicans in town have refused to make for the past 20 something years.

That is why, with this years increase, Middletown's tax rate will have risen 25% over the past 4 years.

At some point you need to look in the mirror and stop blaming others for your short comings. 

Like Middletown, other municipalities around that state, as well as along the bayshore, have been saddled with reduced aid and unfunded mandates from Trenton. However the impact has not had nearly the same adverse effects as here, because instead of blaming others, these towns  looked at themselves and made choices that dealt with the problem instead of playing the avoid and blame game. 

There are two other very good posts today from Pat Walsh's Middletown Musings blog and Matt Morehead's A Voice for Youth blog that address Middletown's budget dealings. 

Walsh's talks about the townships use of deferred school board taxes, while Morehead's post asks why other towns in the area have been able to keep their tax rate stable while Middletowns has skyrocketed. 

    

Extra Extra Read All About It - The Courier Is Sold To New Owner

Yesterday was a sad day after I read the post on Melissa Gaffney's blog Sableminded about the April 1st demise of the Courier newspaper.

I have been a fan of the Courier for  a long time, and have been lending this blog to the online version of it for a number of months now. At one point I was considering having MiddletownMike visitors redirected to the Courier version of this blog. I had been hearing for quite awhile that the Courier was in trouble and that it's future was in question, but I had thought and hope that the paper would somehow survive and live on in some form or another, but due to that uncertainty  the redirect just never seemed to happen.

When the Courier's publisher Jim Purcell announced that the Courier was only going to publish bi-weekly and that through a partnership with Rutgers University, it was going to attempt to survive on-line as a web based publication, I was at first disheartened.  I became encouraged a few weeks later however when I was told by Jim that it looked like the web based model was going to work out, revenue had already increased over the previous months due to the new venture with Rutgers.

So, when I heard a couple of weeks ago that the Azzolina family had changed their mind and no longer desired to be in the news business it came as a mild shock, if they couldn't find a buyer they were going to shutdown operations.  I didn't quite want to believe it, after all the paper seemed to be on track to  profitability once again. Needless to say then, that when I stopped by the office to say hello, it was a rather gloomy place.  

Today though, when I returned home from work and logged onto the blog I noticed  the headline on the Courier widget "The Courier is sold to new owner", my spirits were lifted.

I don't know who has brought the Courier or whether or not that they intend to keep the online version up and running, but I am happy that they did. It would have been a real loss to the bayshore if the paper had folded, the Courier after all has been a staple of northern Monmouth County for since 1955. 

As for MiddletownMike's future with the Courier, I don't have an answer for that just yet. I need to make a few phone calls to see what the future may hold. I am just glad that the paper did not fade away like so many others have done lately.

I am also happy to think that some of the people at the Courier, who have become my friends, may now not have to worry about losing their jobs and finding employment elsewhere. I hope  

Gas prices fuel some skipped first aid calls

The Asbury Park Press is reporting that the high cost of gas is causing some members of the Holmdel First Aid Squad to miss calls for help. It seems that a number of the First Aider's are on fixed incomes and can not afford to respond to calls.
Officials in town are stating however, that all emergency calls are being responded to and that no one is currently in danger.

This seems like a real problem, how long before the public becomes effected? And is this an isolated situation or are other towns in the Bayshore experiencing the same problems? I would like to know because something needs to be done about it before some one dies.

Is it possible for towns to reimburse some of the fuel costs to their emergency responders, maybe $20-$25 dollars a month or maybe on a per mileage, per call basis ? I don't know, but this issue needs to be looked at if towns are going to rely on volunteers to provide emergency services.

Click on the headline to read the story